Robert Kemp (1908–1967) was a Scottish playwright. Along with Tom Fleming and Lennox Milne, he was a founder of the Edinburgh Gateway Company (1953 - 1965).Elder, Michael (2003), ''What do You do During the Day?'', Eldon Productions, p. 15, He was born at

Longhope Longhope is a village in west Gloucestershire, situated within the Forest of Dean, England, United Kingdom. Arthur Bullock, who was born in Longhope in 1899, described its location as follows: * The parish occupies the most easterly valley in t ...

Orkney Orkney (; sco, Orkney; on, Orkneyjar; nrn, Orknøjar), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland, situated off the north coast of the island of Great Britain. Orkney is 10 miles (16 km) nort ...

, where his father was the minister. Educated at

Robert Gordon's College Robert Gordon's College is a co-educational Independent school (UK) for day pupils in Aberdeen, Scotland. The school caters for pupils from Nursery through to S6. History Robert Gordon, an Aberdeen merchant, made his fortune in 18th century ...

and the

University of Aberdeen , mottoeng = The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom , established = , type = Public research universityAncient university , endowment = £58.4 million (2021) , budget ...

, he lived in London and then in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

(in Warriston Crescent). Before turning to drama, he trained as a journalist with the

Manchester Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the G ...

. From the time he adapted

Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (, ; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, , ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the greatest writers in the French language and world ...

's ''

L'Ecole des Femmes ''The School for Wives'' (french: L'école des femmes; ) is a theatrical comedy written by the seventeenth century French playwright Molière and considered by some critics to be one of his finest achievements. It was first staged at the Théâ ...

'' for the Scottish stage in 1947 he sought to promote a distinctly national drama, often employing

Scots Scots usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: * Scots language, a language of the West Germanic language family native to Scotland * Scots people, a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland * Scoti, a Latin na ...

dialogue. In 1948, working with

Tyrone Guthrie Sir William Tyrone Guthrie (2 July 1900 – 15 May 1971) was an English theatrical director instrumental in the founding of the Stratford Festival of Canada, the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and the Tyrone Guthrie Centre at his ...

, he staged a revival of Scotland's first Scottish play, David Lyndsay's ''

Ane Pleasant Satyre of the Thrie Estaitis ''A Satire of the Three Estates'' (Middle Scots: ''Ane Pleasant Satyre of the Thrie Estaitis''), is a satirical morality play in Middle Scots, written by makar Sir David Lyndsay. The complete play was first performed outside in the playing field ...

'' and, also in 1948, he coined the phrase “Edinburgh Festival Fringe”. His son, Arnold Kemp, achieved fame as a newspaper editor.

Published work

Robert Kemp's plays include * '' The Heart is Highland'' * ''The Laird o' Grippy'' * ''Let Wives Tak Tent'': a free translation into Scots of Molière's '' L'école des femmes'' performed by the Compagnie Jouvet of Paris at the

Edinburgh International Festival The Edinburgh International Festival is an annual arts festival in Edinburgh, Scotland, spread over the final three weeks in August. Notable figures from the international world of music (especially classical music) and the performing arts are ...

, 1947 * ''Off A Duck's Back'' (1961) * ''The Other Dear Charmer'' * ''The Perfect Gent'' * ''The Asset'' (play) * ''Master

John Knox John Knox ( gd, Iain Cnocc) (born – 24 November 1572) was a Scottish minister, Reformed theologian, and writer who was a leader of the country's Reformation. He was the founder of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland. Born in Giffordga ...

'' (play) St. Andrew Press, 1960

Other plays

* ''The Scientific Singers'' / ''A Nest of Singing Birds'' (1955 / 1957) * ''Marigold'' (1955), a musical play, with music by

Cedric Thorpe Davie Cedric Thorpe Davie OBE FRSE FRAM RSA LLD (30 May 1913 – 18 January 1983) was a musician and composer, specialising in film scores, most notably '' The Green Man'' in 1956. A high proportion of his film and documentary work and compositional ...

* ''The Man Among the Roses'' (1956), a verse play based on the ballad of

Tam Lin Tam (or Tamas) Lin (also called Tamlane, Tamlin, Tambling, Tomlin, Tam Lien, Tam-a-Line, Tam Lyn, or Tam Lane) is a character in a legendary ballad originating from the Scottish Borders. It is also associated with a reel of the same name, also ...

* ''The Penny Wedding'' (1957) * ''The Daft Days'' (1957), adapted from the novel by Neil Munro * ''Rob Roy'' (1960), adapted from the novel by Sir

Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'', '' Rob Roy' ...

References

External links

Special Collection of Robert Kemp's work held by Glasgow University Library.
1908 births 1967 deaths Alumni of the University of Aberdeen Scottish dramatists and playwrights Writers from Orkney 20th-century British dramatists and playwrights Edinburgh Festival Fringe {{Scotland-bio-stub

Published work

Other plays

Further reading

References

External links